JP4116973B2 - Sheet alignment apparatus and image forming apparatus to which the apparatus is applied - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet aligning apparatus configured to align a bundle of sheets by a sheet aligning operation such as a reciprocating movement of a cursor, and an image forming apparatus to which the sheet aligning apparatus is applied.

  Conventionally, a sheet aligning device as shown in FIG. 15 described in Patent Document 1 is known. The sheet aligning device performs post-processing such as stapling and punching on a bundle of a plurality of sheets P that have been subjected to fixing processing, so that a paper discharge tray (in-body tray 125) that is partitioned in the image forming apparatus main body. A predetermined number of sheets P are aligned in order to move the bundle of sheets P to the post-processing position, or to discharge the bundle of post-processed sheets P from the in-body tray to the in-body tray 125. It is moved to a position.

  FIG. 15 is a plan view schematically showing the sheet aligning device 120 of such an image forming apparatus. This sheet aligning device 120 is a first and second cursor as a cursor in the width direction (vertical direction in FIG. 15). Second width adjustment members 121 and 122, a front alignment member 123 as a forward (rightward in FIG. 15) cursor, and a paper stopper 124 as a rear cursor are provided. That is, the sheet aligning device 120 includes a first width adjusting member 121 that aligns the position in the width direction of the paper P discharged on the in-body tray 125, and a second width disposed so as to face the first width adjusting member 121. The width adjusting member 122, the paper stopper 124 against which the opposite side (left side in the figure) P3 orthogonal to the opposite sides P1 and P2 in the width direction of the paper P, and the paper stopper 124 are disposed. A leading member 123 that presses the side P3 of the paper P against the paper stopper 124. In the sheet aligning device 120, the first width adjusting member 121 and the second width adjusting member 122 can move forward and backward in the width direction as indicated by arrows, and the front alignment member 123 moves in the front-rear direction. It can be done.

In the sheet aligning device 120 configured as described above, the first and second width-adjusting members 121 and 122 and the front-adjusting member 123 are positioned with respect to the fixed sheet P that is to be discharged to the in-body tray 125. In a subsequent discharge, a plurality of sheets P are stacked on the in-body tray 125 in an aligned state. Next, by moving the first and second width adjusting members 121 and 122 to the left (downward in FIG. 15), the aligned bundle of sheets P is moved to the post-processing position. Thereafter, the sheet aligning device 120 moves the first width adjusting member 121 and the second width adjusting member 122 upward in the drawing to discharge the bundle of paper P after the post-processing to an unillustrated outside tray. It moves to the predetermined position to do. The paper stopper 124 is located at the end of the discharge path from the in-body tray 125 to the unillustrated outside tray, and is in a state of being retractable with respect to the discharge path (in a state of opening and closing the end of the discharge path). It has become.
JP 2002-114433 A

  Incidentally, among image forming apparatuses having a function of performing post-processing such as stapling as described above, an image forming apparatus configured to thermally fix a toner image onto a sheet P is shown in FIG. The end of the paper P discharged onto the in-body tray 125 may be largely curled depending on the material of the paper P, the moisture absorption state, or the like. In such a case, the curled edge of the paper P is positioned above the upright wall 126 of the front member 123 formed so as to stand upright, so that the front member 123 is indicated by an arrow. Even if it reciprocates in the front-rear direction, it cannot be aligned.

  Further, the leading member 123 slightly reciprocates from a position corresponding to the size of the paper P (for example, the paper size of B5, A4, etc.), but the paper P is aligned. If it is larger, the front and rear length of the paper P in plan view is shorter than the actual size of the paper P with the curl extended, so that the upper end of the upright wall 126 of the leading member 123 is positioned above the curled edge of the paper P. Even if this is done, the upright wall 126 of the leading member 123 does not come into contact with the edge of the paper P, and the paper P cannot be aligned. In such a case, a bundle of misaligned (unevenly) sheets P is subjected to post-processing such as stapling, which may cause a problem of post-processing failure.

  In order to solve such a problem, as described in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 17, the upper portion of the front moving member 123 is inclined rearward (leftward in FIG. 17), and this inclined portion An improved measure is disclosed in which an inclined wall 127 whose upper edge portion is located above the front moving member 123 is joined. By doing so, the paper P discharged to the in-body tray 125 is captured by the inclined wall 127 and inclined even if the leading curl is formed at the leading end as shown in FIG. The wall 127 presses the end of the curled paper P to the left, thereby causing the paper P to generate a downward force along the wall surface of the inclined wall 123, so that the end of the curled paper P is raised to the standing wall 126. It is described that it functions to guide to the side (paragraph [0040] of Patent Document 1).

  However, in the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the leading end position of the sheet P that is in contact with the inclined wall 127 is different from the leading end of the sheet P that is in contact with the vertical standing wall 126 of the leading member 123. Because of the separation, it cannot be said that substantial alignment is performed, and the end portions in the front-rear direction of the bundle of sheets P taken out from the in-body tray 125 are often not aligned, and curling is remarkable. In the case of the paper P, when the inclined wall 127 presses the paper P to the left, a component force may be applied to the front end of the paper P to increase the curl. There is also a problem of solving the problem of becoming uneasy.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and even if there is a curl at the leading end of the sheet, the sheet aligning apparatus capable of correcting the curl and surely aligning a bundle of sheets, and this An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus to which the apparatus is applied.

First aspect of the present invention, a paper discharge tray the paper is ejected, a movable paper discharge direction of the paper, and a cursor for aligning the sheet discharged onto the sheet discharge tray, and a sheet pressing member which operates in conjunction with the matching operation of the cursor is performed, the cursor has a upright plate to abut stop the leading edge of the sheet is erected perpendicular to the discharge direction The sheet pressing member is movable between a predetermined first position and a second position moved from the first position in a direction opposite to the paper discharge direction by a predetermined distance. When the cursor is in the second position, the leading edge of the sheet is stacked on the discharge tray when the cursor is in the second position. It is characterized by taking a pressing posture to be pressed in the direction .

  By adopting such a configuration, the paper after the fixing process that has been discharged from the inside of the device main body to the paper discharge tray is pressed against the cursor provided on the paper discharge tray each time the paper is discharged. Thus, the bundle of sheets sequentially stacked on the discharge tray is aligned.

The cursor is provided with a sheet pressing member that presses the leading edge of the sheet toward the sheet discharge tray each time the sheet is discharged to the sheet discharge tray. Even in this case, the curl is pressed toward the sheet discharge tray (ie, downward) by the operation of the sheet pressing member , and the leading edge of the sheet is forcibly aligned by correcting the curl.

In this way, by providing the sheet pressing member at the cursor, the bundle of sheets discharged to the discharge tray is subjected to a substantial alignment process that is not apparent, and thus the bundle of sheets taken out from the discharge tray. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent inconveniences such that the leading edge portion is uneven.

In addition, when the cursor is at the first position, the paper pressing member has a receiving posture in which the paper contact surface by the standing plate extends substantially upward, so that the leading edge of the paper is curled. However, when the cursor is at the second position, the curling is corrected because the pressing edge is pressed toward the stacking direction of the paper discharge tray when the cursor is at the second position. be able to.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the sheet pressing member is pivotally supported so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the paper discharge direction provided on the cursor, and the cursor is moved. The sheet pressing member is erected so as to extend further upward from the upper end of the standing plate when taking the receiving posture, and when taking the pressing posture, the paper pressing member is substantially horizontal from the standing state. The apparatus further comprises interlocking means for rotating the state .

By adopting such a configuration, the paper holding member is set to the receiving posture until the leading edge of the paper comes into contact with the cursor by the interlocking means, so that the front edge of the paper is securely attached to the paper holding member in this posture. Be captured. Then, the curl at the front end of the paper is corrected by changing the posture of the paper pressing member after the front end of the paper is captured to the paper pressing posture. Further, since the sheet pressing member is configured to change the posture between the sheet pressing posture and the receiving posture by rotating around the horizontal axis, the other members such as the sheet pressing member are moved up and down instead of rotating. The structure of the interlocking means is simpler than those to be made.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the cursor is attached to a first belt stretched in a reciprocating manner along the discharge tray, and reciprocates in parallel with the first belt. The second belt is movably stretched, and the interlocking means includes a rack provided on the cursor so as to be movable up and down, a pinion provided on the curl holding guide to be engaged with the rack, and interference with the rack. And a cam provided on the second belt to raise and lower the rack.

  By adopting such a configuration, the cam is set at a predetermined position corresponding to the sheet by driving and stopping the second belt according to the size of the sheet to be discharged. Then, with the cam positioned, the first belt is driven to move the cursor to the cam position and stop, whereby the cursor is positioned at the position corresponding to the paper. By reciprocating the first belt within the cam range in this state, the rack that interferes with the cam moves up and down, and the pinion engaged with the rack rotates forward and backward. The presser guide changes its posture between the paper presser posture and the presser release posture.

Accordingly, by discharging the paper from the apparatus main body toward the paper discharge tray so as to synchronize with the change in the posture of the paper pressing member (that is, when the paper is discharged, the paper pressing member is in the press release posture). When the paper is ejected to the paper ejection tray, the paper pressing member is synchronized so that the paper pressing member assumes the paper pressing position when the leading edge of the paper hits the cursor. Since the leading edge of the stopped paper is forcibly pressed downward by the paper pressing member , even if a significant curl is formed at the leading edge of the paper, the curl is corrected and flattened, thereby Is consistently performed.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the rack is urged downward by the urging force of the urging means.

By adopting such a configuration, the rack is forcibly lowered by the urging force of the urging means in a state where interference with the cam is avoided, so that the sheet pressing member is moved from the press release position by the forced lowering of the rack. It becomes possible to change the posture to the presser posture, and thereby the curl of the paper is reliably corrected.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the sheet pressing member includes a vertical plate that can be moved up and down along the upright plate, and an upper edge portion of the vertical plate opposite to the paper discharge direction. A horizontal plate extending in a direction, and in conjunction with the movement of the cursor, when the paper pressing member takes the receiving posture, the vertical member extends further upward from the upper end of the standing plate. When the plate is raised and the pressing posture is taken, it further comprises interlocking means for lowering the vertical plate so that the horizontal plate can press the leading edge of the paper.

  A sixth aspect of the invention is an image forming apparatus to which the sheet aligning device according to any of the first to fifth aspects is applied.

  By adopting such a configuration, the image forming apparatus can enjoy the functions and effects provided by the sheet aligning device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cursor is provided with a paper pressing mechanism for pressing the paper discharged to the paper discharge tray toward the stacking direction of the paper discharge tray. The bundle of sheets discharged to the discharge tray by the sheet pressing action can be subjected to a substantial alignment process that is not apparent, and the leading edge of the bundle of sheets taken out from the discharge tray is uneven. Such inconvenience can be surely prevented.

Each time the paper ejected from the device main body is supplied to the paper ejection tray, it is shaken in the front-rear direction with the front end being in contact with the cursor by the reciprocating movement of the cursor. In this state, the paper pressing member changes the posture between the paper pressing posture and the receiving posture in conjunction with the reciprocating movement of the cursor by the action of the interlocking means, so that the curl at the front end of the paper is forced to stop against the cursor. manner since it is pressed by the paper pressing member, the paper is curled reliably leading edge is aligned with corrected state, compared to that there is no conventional sheet pressing member, alignment of the sheet on the discharge tray Can be performed more reliably.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the leading end of the sheet is received by the sheet pressing member of this orientation, the curl of the paper edge can be reliably corrected by continuing the paper pressing member changing the position on the paper pressing position . Then, the paper presser member can be rotated between horizontal presses to change the posture between the paper presser posture and the receiving posture, thereby simplifying the structure of the paper alignment device and ensuring the correction of curl. It can be carried out.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the sheet is discharged from the apparatus main body toward the discharge tray so as to synchronize with the change in the posture of the sheet pressing member. Since the leading edge of the paper that stops at the cursor is forcibly pressed downward by the paper pressing member , even if a significant curl is formed at the leading edge of the paper, this curl is corrected and flattened, This ensures that the sheets are aligned.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the rack is forcibly lowered by the urging force of the urging means in a state where interference with the cam is avoided, the sheet pressing member is forced to be lowered by the rack. It is possible to change the posture to the paper pressing posture, and thereby the paper curl can be reliably corrected.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus can enjoy the function and effect provided by the paper aligning device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects.

  FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a front view showing an outline of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an external perspective view thereof. 1 and 2 show a copying machine as an example of the image forming apparatus 10. Hereinafter, the outline of the configuration of the image forming apparatus 10 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. 1 and with reference to FIG. 2 as appropriate, and then the details of the sheet aligning apparatus will be described.

  The image forming apparatus 10 includes a device main body 11 configured in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The device main body 11 is roughly divided into three parts in the vertical direction, that is, a lower housing 12, a connecting housing 13, and an upper housing 14 in order from the bottom. Inside the lower housing 12, a paper feeding unit 15, an image forming unit 16, and a fixing unit 17 are provided in order from the bottom. Further, the connection housing 13 is provided with a paper discharge unit 18 and a post-processing unit 20. From the paper supply unit 15 to the post-processing unit 20, the paper P as an image forming target is sequentially arranged from the bottom to the top in correspondence with the conveyance from the bottom to the top.

  An image reading unit 21 is provided inside the upper housing 14. A paper discharge space S is provided between the lower housing 12 and the upper housing 14 on the right side of the paper discharge unit 18. A document feeding mechanism 22 (FIG. 2) is provided on the upper portion of the upper housing 14.

  The paper feed unit 15 includes a paper feed cassette 23 in which a plurality of paper sheets P are stored in a stacked state, a paper feed roller 24 that feeds the paper P in the paper feed cassette 23 one by one, and a manual feed by a user. The manual feed tray 25 for feeding paper by the paper feed, the paper feed roller 26 for feeding the paper set in the manual feed tray 25, and the paper P supplied from one of these paper feed rollers 24, 26 are temporarily And a registration roller 27 for stopping and supplying the image forming unit 16 in synchronization. As shown in FIG. 2, the paper feed cassette 23 is configured to be able to be pulled out forward (in the direction of the arrow a), which is the front side for the user. The paper P is exchanged. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the manual feed tray 25 is swingably supported by the lower housing 12 via a shaft 25a on the base end side, and the substantially horizontal operating position shown in FIG. The posture can be changed between a retracted position that is substantially upright along the left side surface.

  The image forming unit 16 exposes the surface of the photoconductive drum 28 by exposing the surface of the photoconductive drum 28 and the primary charger 30 that uniformly charges the peripheral surface of the photoconductive drum 28 as an image carrier. An electrostatic latent image is formed, for example, an exposure device 31 formed of a laser scanner, a developing device 32 for developing the electrostatic latent image by attaching toner, and a toner image on the photosensitive drum 28 from the registration roller 27. A transfer charger 33 composed of a transfer roller for transferring to the supplied paper P, and a cleaner 34 for removing residual toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 28 after the transfer of the toner image are provided. The exposure device 31 scans the peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 28 with a laser beam controlled based on image information read by an image reading unit 21 described later.

  The fixing unit 17 includes a fixing roller 36 including a heater 35, and a pressure roller 37 that is pressed by the fixing roller 36 and forms a fixing nip portion between the fixing roller 36. The sheet P on which the toner image is transferred on the surface in the image forming unit 16 is subjected to a so-called fixing process in which the toner image is fixed on the surface by being heated and pressurized in the fixing unit 17. ing.

  The paper discharge unit 18 switches the conveyance path of the paper P after toner image fixing between the upper post-processing unit 20 side and the right paper discharge space S side, and the paper P from the flapper 38 A paper discharge roller 40 that discharges toward the right paper discharge space S and a flat paper discharge plate 41 that forms the bottom of the paper discharge space S are provided. The paper P discharged from the paper discharge roller 40 is stacked on the paper discharge plate 41 in a so-called face-down manner with the image surface (the surface on which the toner image is fixed) facing downward.

  The post-processing unit 20 includes a feeding / conveying unit 42, an alignment unit 43, an out-body tray 44, and a stapler 45 (FIG. 2) as a post-processing device.

  The feeding / conveying unit 42 is disposed above the paper discharge unit 18 (FIG. 1). 3 and 4 are explanatory views of a front view showing an embodiment of the paper feeding / conveying unit 42. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the paper P is fed to the alignment unit 43, and FIG. A state where the paper is discharged to the outer tray 44 is shown.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the feeding / conveying unit 42 includes a switchable first flapper 46 and a second flapper 47 that guide the sheet P conveyed from the paper discharge unit 18, and the first and second flappers. The upper discharge roller 48 and the lower discharge roller 49 for discharging the paper P guided by the flappers 46 and 47 toward the right alignment unit 43, and the position of the rear end of the paper P discharged to the alignment unit 43. The sheet stopper 51 that can be retracted to be regulated and the conveyance roller 52 that conveys the sheet P on the alignment unit 43 toward the left outer tray 44 (FIG. 1) are configured.

  The first and second flappers 46 and 47 can be switched between the postures shown in FIGS. When the posture shown in FIG. 3 (in-body discharge posture) is set, the paper P conveyed from the lower paper discharge unit 18 is guided to the upper and lower paper discharge rollers 48 and 49. . Further, when the posture is set to the posture shown in FIG. 4 (out-body discharge posture), the left outside-body tray 44 holds the paper P that has been nipped and conveyed by the lower paper discharge roller 49 and the conveyance roller 52 from the right side. (Fig. 1) is guided to the side.

  Further, the sheet stopper 51 can be changed in posture between a standing posture protruding upward from the reference surface 59 shown in FIG. 3 and a retracting posture retracting below the reference surface 59 shown in FIG. . Further, the transport roller 52 can be repositioned between a retracted position retracted downward from the reference surface 59 shown in FIG. 3 and an operating position protruding upward from the reference surface 59 shown in FIG. . When the transport roller 52 is in the retracted position, a gap is formed between the upper lower paper discharge roller 49 so that the rear ends of the plurality of sheets P can enter. The lower paper discharge roller 49 serves as both a paper discharge roller and a transport roller. That is, in the state shown in FIG. 3, the lower paper discharge roller 49 discharges the paper P together with the upper paper discharge roller 48 onto the in-body tray (paper discharge tray) 53, whereas in the state shown in FIG. The paper P is sandwiched together with the transport roller 52 and transported to the left.

  In this way, the feeding / conveying unit 42 discharges the paper P conveyed from the lower paper discharge unit 18 to the right aligning unit 43, and discharges the paper P discharged onto the aligning unit 43 to the left cylinder. A switching function for discharging onto the outer tray 44 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image reading unit 21 is freely openable and closable for pressing a document D against the document table 60 and a light-transmissive document table 60 on which the document D is placed with its image surface G facing downward. A document pressing plate 61, a scanning unit 62 that moves from left to right while irradiating the image surface G of the document D on the document table 60, and a mirror 63 that further reflects the reflected light from the image surface G. 64, 65, a lens unit 66 that forms an image of reflected light on a CCD 67, which will be described later, and a CCD 67 that photoelectrically converts the reflected light supplied through the lens unit 66 into an electrical signal. .

  The document reading unit 21 performs so-called fixed reading in which the document D is fixed and the scanning unit 62 is moved. Image information read by the image reading unit 21 is sent to the exposure unit 31 described above. An operation panel 68 (FIG. 2) operated by the user is disposed on the front side of the upper housing 14 in which the image reading unit 21 is disposed.

  In the image forming apparatus 10 configured as described above, the image information on the image plane G is read from the document D placed on the document table 60 by the scanning unit 62 or the like that scans and moves. The read image information is digitized and sent to the exposure unit 31 of the image forming unit 16.

  On the other hand, in the image forming unit 16, the photosensitive drum 28 is rotationally driven in the arrow direction, and the surface thereof is uniformly charged to a predetermined polarity and a predetermined potential by the primary charger 34. The surface of the photosensitive drum 28 after charging is subjected to an exposure process by an exposure device 31 based on digitized image information, whereby an electrostatic latent image is formed. This electrostatic latent image is developed as a toner image by the toner supplied from the developing device 32. The toner image thus formed on the photosensitive drum 28 is transferred onto the surface of the paper P by the transfer charger 33.

  The sheet P is fed from the sheet feeding cassette 23 or the manual feed tray 25 of the sheet feeding unit 15 by the sheet feeding roller 24 or the sheet feeding roller 26, and then temporarily stopped by the registration roller 27, and further on the photosensitive drum 28. The toner image is supplied to a transfer portion between the photosensitive drum 28 and the transfer charger 33 in synchronization with the toner image.

  After the toner image is transferred, the residual toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 28 is removed by the cleaner 34 and is used for the next image formation. On the other hand, the paper P after transfer of the toner image is conveyed to the fixing unit 17 where it is heated and pressed by the fixing roller 36 and the pressure roller 37 to fix the toner image on the surface. The paper P on which the toner image is fixed in this way is sorted as follows according to the presence or absence of post-processing.

  First, when no post-processing is performed, the paper P after the toner image is fixed is guided to the right paper discharge roller 40 by the flapper 38 of the paper discharge unit 18, and is discharged onto the right paper discharge plate 41 by the paper discharge roller 40. In addition, the paper is discharged in a so-called face-down manner in which the image surface (surface on which the toner image is formed) is directed downward, and is stacked one after another.

  In contrast, when there is post-processing, the paper P after the toner image fixing is conveyed to the upper feeding / conveying unit 20 by switching the flapper 38. The conveyed paper P is guided to the upper and lower paper discharge rollers 48 and 49 by the first and second flappers 46 and 47 set in the in-cylinder sheet discharge posture shown in FIG. Discharged. At this time, the conveying roller 52 is disposed at the retracted position, and the sheet stopper 51 is disposed at the standing position. The front end of the paper P discharged onto the in-body tray 53 is pushed to the left by the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 and the rear end is abutted against the paper stopper 51, thereby aligning the position in the transport direction. Is done. At the same time, the left and right side edges of the discharged paper P are pressed by the width adjusting members 55 and 56, thereby aligning the positions in the width direction. Such an aligning operation is performed in the same manner for the paper P discharged one after another on the in-body tray 53.

  When a predetermined number of sheets P to be stapled are stacked on the in-body tray 53, the discharge of the sheets P is stopped. Thereafter, the width adjusting members 55 and 56 in contact with the left and right side edges of the paper P move forward, and the front side of the rear end of the paper P is positioned at a position corresponding to the stapler 45. . The stapler 45 continues to operate, and a predetermined number of sheets P are bound. The bundle of sheets P after stapling is moved backward by the width adjusting members 55 and 56 and returned to the original position. As shown in FIG. 4, the returned bundle of sheets P is sandwiched between the rear end of the bundle of sheets P and the lower discharge roller 49 by the conveying roller 52 disposed at the operating position. Then, the paper stopper 51 is set to the retracted position shown in FIG. 4, the first and second flappers 46 and 47 are set to the out-body discharge posture shown in FIG. As the roller 52 rotates in the direction of the arrow, the stapled paper P is conveyed to the left, and is discharged onto the stacking portion 58 (FIG. 1) by the paper discharge roller 57 of the out-body tray 44 and stacked.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the alignment unit 43 is disposed adjacent to the right side of the feeding / conveying unit 42, and is positioned above the paper discharge plate 41, that is, above the discharge space S. The aligning unit 43 includes an in-cylinder tray 53 that supports the sheet P discharged from the feeding / conveying unit 42 from below, and a conveyance direction of the sheet P discharged to the in-cylinder tray 53 (left-right direction in FIG. 1). And a first width adjusting member 55 and a second width adjusting member 56 that are movable in the front-rear direction along the upper surface of the in-body tray 53.

  Each time the paper P is discharged onto the in-body tray 53, the transport direction alignment mechanism 70 causes the paper P and its bundle to reciprocate in the left-right direction, and presses the leading edge of the paper P when moving leftward. The rear end of the paper P is brought into contact with the paper stopper 51 (FIG. 5), thereby aligning the position of the paper P on the in-body tray 53 in the transport direction.

  On the other hand, each time the paper P is discharged onto the in-body tray 53, the width adjusting members 55 and 56 repeatedly approach and separate from each other, and press each end in the width direction of the paper P when approaching. The position in the direction (hereinafter referred to as “width direction”) orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the paper P on the in-body tray 53 is aligned. When the transport direction alignment mechanism 70 performs an alignment operation, the paper P is moved to a position where it is abutted by the paper stopper 51 and slightly bent by the transport direction alignment mechanism 70, thereby performing a transport direction alignment process. It is like that. In addition, the width adjusting members 55 and 56 reciprocate a predetermined number of times in the opposite direction in synchronization with the conveying direction alignment mechanism 70 performing the alignment operation. The alignment process in the width direction of the paper P is performed.

  In addition to the alignment operation, the width adjusting members 55 and 56 move the paper P on the in-body tray 53 to the front side (front side) and discharge the paper P to be discharged onto the out-of-body tray 44. Sorting is performed by shifting the position in the width direction. Further, similarly, the sheet P on the in-body tray 53 is moved to a position corresponding to the stapler 45, and the sheet P after stapling is moved backward to move the original position. It also has a function to return to the position.

  The outside tray 44 is disposed on the left side of the feeding / conveying unit 42 in FIG. 1, and includes a paper discharge roller 57 that discharges the paper P conveyed from the feeding / conveying unit 42 to the left, and the discharged paper. And a loading portion 58 that supports P from below.

  The stapler 45 is for stapling a plurality of sheets P, and is disposed on the front side of the feeding / conveying unit 42 as shown in FIG.

  Next, details of the alignment unit 43 will be described based on FIG. 5 and with reference to FIGS. 6 to 12 as necessary. FIG. 5 is a plan view schematically showing an embodiment of the alignment unit 43. As shown in FIG. 5, the alignment unit 43 aligns the fixing-finished paper P discharged onto the in-body tray 53 partitioned in the image forming apparatus main body 11 in the width direction (up and down direction in FIG. 5). The first width adjusting member 55, the second width adjusting member 56 disposed so as to face the first width adjusting member 55, and one side (rear end) P3 orthogonal to the opposite sides P1, P2 in the width direction of the paper P Is provided with a paper stopper 51 against which the paper P is pressed and a conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70 that operates to press the paper P against the paper stopper 51.

  FIG. 6 is a sectional view in side view showing an embodiment of the width-shifting members 55 and 56. As shown in FIG. 6, the second width adjusting member 56 is arranged so that it can slide in the width direction (left and right direction in FIG. 6) along the guide groove 551 provided in the first width adjusting member 55. While being attached to the member 55, the first width adjusting member 55 itself can move forward and backward in the width direction integrally with the second width adjusting member 56. Accordingly, it is possible to flexibly cope with the size and the position in the width direction of the sheet P introduced into the alignment unit 43 from the fixing unit 17 through the connection housing 13 (FIGS. 1 and 2).

  FIG. 7 is a plan view for explaining the first width adjusting member driving mechanism 50 that drives the first width adjusting member 55. The first width adjusting member driving mechanism 50 is built in the in-body tray 53 and transmits the rotation of the first width adjusting motor 80 to the driving pulley 83 via the gears 81 and 82, and the driving pulley 83 and the driven pulley 84. The timing belt 87 stretched around the tension pulleys 85 and 86 is driven. A connecting member 88 protrudes from the surface side of the timing belt 87 between the driven pulley 84 and the tension pulley 85, and the connecting member 88 is connected to an appropriate position of the first width adjusting member 55, so that the first width adjusting is achieved. The member 55 can be moved along a guide groove 552 (FIGS. 5 and 6) formed in the in-body tray 53 and extending in the width direction.

  FIG. 8 is a plan view for explaining the second width adjusting member driving mechanism 101 that drives the second width adjusting member 56. The second width adjusting member driving mechanism 101 is accommodated above the base 553 of the first width adjusting member 55 and transmits the rotation of the second width adjusting motor 102 to the driving pulley 106 via the gears 103, 104, and 105. Then, the timing belt 111 stretched around the driving pulley 106, the driven pulley 107, and the tension pulleys 108, 110 is driven, and the second width adjusting member 56 connected to the timing belt 111 via the connecting member 112 is the first. It moves on the width adjusting member 55. The upper surface 554 (FIG. 6) of the first width adjusting member 55 is set so as to be substantially flush with the upper surface 74 of the in-body tray 53.

  FIGS. 9 and 10 are perspective views showing an embodiment of the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70. FIG. 9 is a view of the handle member 70 of FIG. 1 as viewed obliquely from the left, and FIG. 10 is the handle of FIG. The state which looked at the member 70 from diagonally right is shown, respectively. FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view schematically showing the transport direction alignment mechanism 70, and FIG. 12 is a schematic front view thereof. 9 and 10, the XX direction is referred to as the width direction, and the YY direction is referred to as the left-right direction. In particular, the -X side is the front side, the + X side is facing, the -Y direction is the left side, and the + Y direction. Is called right.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70 is arranged so as to traverse in the width direction a long guide opening 531 extending in the left-right direction provided at a substantially central position in the width direction of the in-body tray 53. A hard synthetic resin cursor 71 fitted in the long guide opening 531, a paper pressing mechanism 72 for pressing the leading edge of the paper P attached to the cursor 71, and moving the cursor 71 in the left-right direction The cursor 71 is positioned according to the cursor driving mechanism 73 to be moved and the size of the paper P, and a predetermined operation (the leading edge of the paper P is applied to the paper pressing mechanism 72 according to the reciprocation of the cursor 71 by the cursor driving mechanism 73). And a positioning mechanism 74 that performs an operation of pressing the edge).

  The cursor 71 is composed of a flat plate 711 erected between opposing edges in the width direction of the long guide opening 531 and a standing plate 712 erected from the right edge of the flat plate 711. On each end face in the width direction of the flat plate 711, a projected ridge 716 extending in the left-right direction is provided so as to protrude in opposite directions, while the opposing edge surface in the width direction of the long guide opening 531 is provided. Are provided with guide grooves 532 extending in the left-right direction in which each guided ridge 716 is fitted in a sliding contact state, and each guided ridge 716 is fitted into a corresponding guide groove 532, thereby 71 can move forward and backward in the left-right direction within the long guide opening 531.

  The upper surface of the flat plate 711 is set so as to be flush with or slightly lower than the upper surface of the in-body tray 53, so that the paper P fed to the in-body tray 53 does not interfere with the flat plate 711. It can be positioned above the flat plate 711.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the paper presser mechanism 72 includes a hard synthetic resin curl presser guide (paper presser guide) 721 that presses the leading edge of the paper P, and an appropriate position (to be described later) of the curl presser guide 721. A pinion 724 formed on the shaft support cylinder 723), and a rack member (rack) 725 that meshes with the pinion 724 and changes the posture of the curl presser guide 721 between the paper presser posture and the presser release posture. It is configured.

  The curl presser guide 721 includes a flat presser guide main body 722 that presses the leading edge of the paper P, and a pivoted support cylinder 723 that is integrally formed on the base end side of the presser guide main body 722. . On the other hand, a cut groove 713 into which a substantially lower half of the pivoted cylindrical body 723 is fitted is recessed at a substantially central position in the width direction of the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71, and an upper edge of the standing plate 712 is provided. A pair of brackets 714 in the width direction protrudes upward from the cut groove 713 and the shaft-supported cylindrical body 723 rotates around a horizontal shaft 715 installed between the pair of brackets 714. It is pivotally supported.

  Then, the presser guide main body 722 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions around the horizontal shaft 715 by the pivoted support cylinder 723, so that the paper presser posture shown by the solid line in FIG. 9 and FIG. The posture can be changed between postures. The pinion 724 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the pivoted cylinder 723 of the curl pressing guide 721.

  The rack member 725 includes a rack body 726 having a plurality of teeth meshing with the pinion 724, and a rectangular parallelepiped and vertically long sliding base 727 extending downward from a lower edge of the rack body 726. It is made up of. The sliding base 727 is set to have the same thickness dimension as that of the rack main body 726, whereas the left side surface of the sliding base 727 contacts the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 with the rack main body 726 engaged with the pinion 724. The thickness dimension in the left-right direction is set to be larger than the thickness dimension in the left-right direction of the rack body 726 so as to be in contact with each other. Further, the right side surface of the sliding base 727 is set flush with the right side surface of the rack body 726.

  The rack member 725 has a U-shaped rack holding member 75 that covers the sliding base portion 727 and is fixed to the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 with screws or the like. It can move up and down in a state where movement in the direction is restricted. A rectangular stopper 728 that is long in the width direction is fixed at a proper position on the right side surface of the rack body 726 with screws or the like. The stopper 728 prevents the rack member 725 from falling downward from the rack holding member 75. It is preventing.

  Further, an upper locking pin 761 projecting toward the front side is provided at the top of the rack body 726, and the front surface of the rack holding member 75 faces the locking pin 761. A lower locking pin 762 protrudes, and a coil spring 76 is installed between the upper and lower locking pins 761 and 762. The rack member 725 is always urged downward by the urging force of the coil spring 76, so that the stopper 728 normally stops against the upper edge of the rack holding member 75.

  As shown in FIGS. 9, 11 and 12, the cursor drive mechanism 73 is positioned below the long guide opening 531 in the in-body tray 53, and a drive shaft 732 is provided in the width direction at a substantially central portion. The first drive motor 731 that is laterally extended so as to extend to the drive shaft, the drive pulley 733 concentrically connected to the drive shaft 732 of the first drive motor 731, and a lower right end of the long guide opening 531 are driven. A driven pulley 734 that is rotatably supported around a driven shaft 735 so as to face the pulley 733, and a first belt 736 that is stretched between the driving pulley 733 and the driven pulley 734 are configured.

  Between the first belt 736 and the flat plate 711 of the cursor 71, a connecting member 737 fixed to each other by screwing or the like is interposed, and the first belt 736 is driven by forward / reverse driving of the first drive motor 731. By rotating forward and reverse between the pulley 733 and the driven pulley 734, the cursor 71 moves forward and backward via the driven pulley 734 and the connecting member 737.

  9 to 12, the positioning mechanism 74 is positioned below the long guide opening 531 in the in-body tray 53, and the drive shaft 742 is disposed in the width direction on the front side of the first drive motor 731. A second drive motor 741 that is horizontally arranged to extend, a drive pulley 743 concentrically connected to a drive shaft 742 of the second drive motor 741, and a drive pulley at the lower right end of the long guide opening 531 743, a driven pulley 744 that is rotatably supported around a driven shaft 745 (FIG. 10) so as to face the 743, and a second belt 746 stretched between the driving pulley 743 and the driven pulley 744. ing. The positioning mechanism 74 is set slightly below the cursor driving mechanism 73.

  A cam 77 as shown in FIGS. 10 and 12 is fixed to the second belt 746 by screwing or the like on the upper surface side of the forward belt. The cam 77 includes a cam main body 771 bulging upward and a pair of projecting end portions 775 projecting in opposite directions from the left and right end portions of the cam main body 771. In the present embodiment, the cam 77 is fixed to the second belt 746 by screwing these projecting end portions 775 to the second belt 746. It may be fixed via an agent or may be fixed using a band-shaped fastener or the like.

  The cam body 771 has an arcuate apex 772 formed in an arc shape when viewed from the front side, and a right inclined surface 773 that gently inclines from the arcuate apex 772 toward the projecting end 775 toward the right. And a vertical surface 774 that hangs down from the left end portion of the arc top portion 772 toward the projecting end portion 775 on the left side. The cam main body 771 is dimensioned so as to be in contact with the lower surface of the sliding base 727 of the rack member 725.

  The cursor drive mechanism 73 and the positioning mechanism 74 configured as described above perform predetermined operations while being controlled by a control device (not shown). That is, the control device first outputs a drive signal corresponding to the size of the paper P discharged to the alignment unit 43 (length in the paper discharge direction) to the first and second drive motors 731 and 741. Thus, the cursor 71 and the cam 77 are moved to positions corresponding to the size of the paper P by the synchronous driving of the first and second drive motors 731 and 741.

  Next, when the paper P is discharged onto the in-body tray 53 and the leading edge of the paper P comes into contact with the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71, the control device detects this and then the second drive motor 741. A control signal for driving the first drive motor 731 in the forward / reverse direction with a short cycle (for example, 0.5 second cycle) is output while maintaining the stop state. The forward movement of the first drive motor 731 based on this control signal causes the cursor 71 to swing left and right via the first belt 736, so the sheet P whose leading edge has stopped against the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 is The sheet stopper 51 (FIG. 5) with which the left end edge abuts is shaken in the left-right direction by the standing plate 712, and thereby the left-right direction (front-rear direction) with respect to the sheet P on the in-body tray 53 The matching process is performed.

  Further, the rack member 725 attached to the cursor 71 in response to the swing of the cursor 71 and having the lower end surface of the sliding base 727 in contact with the cam 77 also swings in the left-right direction. As the rack member 725 moves up and down, the curl pressing guide 721 rotates forward and backward around the horizontal axis 715. This operation will be described in detail below with reference to FIG.

  13A and 13B are explanatory views for explaining the posture changing action of the curl presser guide 721. FIG. 13A is a state in which the presser guide body 722 is set to the presser release posture, and FIG. 13B is a presser guide body. A state 722 is approaching the paper pressing posture, and (C) shows a state where the pressure guide main body 722 is set to the paper pressing posture.

  First, in a state where the rack member 725 is initially positioned in accordance with the size of the paper P, the sliding base portion 727 of the rack member 725 has a protruding end portion on the right side of the cam 77 as shown in FIG. It is in a state of being placed on 775. In this state, since the rack member 725 is positioned at the lowest position, the pinion 724 meshed with the rack body 726 is rotated by the maximum phase around the horizontal shaft 715, and the presser guide body 722 is thereby raised. ing.

  In this state, since the paper P is supplied to the in-body tray 53, even if a so-called curl in which the leading edge is bent upward is formed on the paper P, this curled portion is the standing plate of the cursor 71. Since it is received by the presser guide main body 722 that extends further upward from the upper end portion of 712, inconvenience that the leading edge of the paper P passes the cursor 71 to the right is reliably prevented.

  When it is detected that the leading edge of the paper P has reached the position of the standing plate 712, the cursor 71 is driven by the first drive motor 731 based on the control signal from the control device via the first belt 736. As shown in FIG. 13B, the rack member 725 rubs up the right inclined surface 773 of the cam main body 771, so that the pinion 724 engaged with the rack main body 726 is moved. Rotates counterclockwise around the horizontal axis 715, thereby pressing the curled portion of the leading edge of the paper P.

  When the rack member 725 reaches the arcuate peak 772 of the cam main body 771, the presser guide main body 722 is set to a paper presser posture in which the presser guide main body 722 is substantially horizontal as shown in FIG. As a result, the curled portion of the paper P is pressed by the presser guide main body 722, so that the curl of the paper P is corrected.

  As described in detail above, the conveyance direction alignment mechanism (paper alignment device) 70 according to the present invention is transferred by the image forming unit 16 including the photosensitive drum 28, the exposure unit 31, the development unit 32, and the like in the lower housing 12. The in-cylinder tray 53 to which the paper P having the toner image subjected to the fixing process in the fixing unit 17 is discharged, and the cursor 71 pressed against the leading edge of the paper P discharged on the in-cylinder tray 53. And the cursor 71 is provided with a paper pressing mechanism 72 that presses the leading edge of the paper P downward each time the paper P is discharged onto the in-body tray 53. Is provided.

  Therefore, the paper P after the fixing process discharged from the apparatus main body 11 to the in-body tray 53 is pressed against the cursor 71 provided on the in-body tray 53 every time the paper P is discharged, thereby A bundle of sheets P sequentially stacked on the in-body tray 53 is aligned.

  The cursor 71 has a paper pressing mechanism 72 that presses the leading edge of the paper P downward (that is, toward the cylinder tray 53) each time the paper P is discharged onto the cylinder tray 53. Therefore, even when the curl formed at the leading edge of the paper P is remarkable, the curled portion is pressed toward the in-body tray 53 by the operation of the paper pressing mechanism 72, and thereby the paper P The curl is corrected.

  In this way, by providing the sheet pressing mechanism 72 in the cursor 71, the bundle of sheets P discharged to the in-body tray 53 is substantially aligned in a state where the curl is corrected. For the bundle of sheets P taken out from the sheet 53 or supplied to the stapler 45, it is possible to reliably prevent the inconvenience that the leading edge portion is uneven.

  The cursor 71 is configured to reciprocate in the paper discharge direction each time the paper P is discharged to the in-body tray 53, and the paper presser mechanism 72 includes the paper P on the in-body tray 53. A curl presser guide 721 that presses the leading edge of the paper and interlocking means for changing the posture of the curl presser guide 721 between the paper presser posture and the presser release posture in conjunction with the reciprocation of the cursor 71. Each time P is ejected to the in-body tray 53, the tip of the cursor 71 is swung back and forth in a state of stopping against the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 by the reciprocating movement of the cursor 71. In this state, the curl presser guide 721 operates between the paper presser posture that presses the curled portion of the paper P in conjunction with the reciprocation of the cursor 71 and the presser release posture that releases the presser by the action of the interlocking means. To position change, curling of the leading end of the sheet P is pressed by forcing curl pressing guide 721 in a state in which sealed against the cursor 71, leading edge is aligned with the curl correction conditions. Therefore, the alignment of the paper P on the in-body tray 53 can be performed more reliably than in the case where the conventional curl pressing guide 721 does not exist.

  The curl presser guide 721 is pivotally supported around a horizontal axis 715 orthogonal to the paper discharge direction provided on the cursor 71, and includes interlocking means (a pivoted cylinder 723 and a rack body 726). Is configured to rotate the curl presser guide 721 forward and backward around the horizontal axis 715 in accordance with the reciprocation of the cursor 71, so that the leading end of the paper P stops against the cursor 71 by the interlocking means. By setting the curl presser guide 721 to the presser release posture until the end, the leading edge of the paper P can be reliably captured by the curl presser guide 721 in this posture.

  Then, the curl at the leading end of the paper P can be corrected by changing the posture of the curl pressing guide 721 after the leading edge of the paper is changed to the paper pressing posture. As described above, the curl presser guide 721 is rotated between the paper presser posture and the presser release posture by rotating around the horizontal axis 715, so that the curl presser guide 721 is changed in the vertical direction as compared with other configurations such as a vertically moved one. The structure of the interlocking means can be simplified, which can contribute to reduction of the apparatus cost.

  The cursor 71 is attached to a first belt 736 that is stretched between the driving pulley 733 and the driven pulley 734 so as to be reciprocally movable in the left-right direction along the in-body tray 53, and reciprocates in parallel with the first belt 736. A second belt 746 is movably stretched between the drive pulley 743 and the positioning mechanism 744, and the interlocking means includes a rack member 725 that can be moved up and down on the cursor 71, and a rack body of the rack member 725. A cam provided on the second belt 746 to move the rack member 725 up and down by interference with the pinion 724 provided concentrically with the pivoted cylindrical body 723 of the curl holding guide 721 to mesh with the rack member 726. 77, the first drive motor 731 according to the size of the paper P to be discharged to the in-body tray 53. Preliminary in synchronous drive of the second drive motor 741, the rack member 725 can be in a state of constantly interfere with the cam 77.

  In this state, the first belt 736 is reciprocated within the range of the cam body 771 by forward and reverse driving of the first drive motor 731, so that the rack member 725 that interferes with the right inclined surface 773 of the cam body 771 moves up and down. Therefore, the pinion 724 engaged with the rack member 725 rotates forward and backward, and the forward and reverse rotation of the pinion 724 causes the curl presser guide 721 to change the posture between the paper presser posture and the presser release posture. Become.

  Therefore, the paper P is discharged from the apparatus main body 11 toward the in-body tray 53 so as to synchronize with the posture change of the curl press guide 721 (that is, when the paper P is discharged, the curl press guide 721 is (By synchronizing the paper discharge of the paper P from the apparatus body 11 so that the curl presser guide 721 is in the paper presser position when the leading edge of the paper P stops at the cursor 71 while being in the presser release posture) Each time P is ejected to the in-body tray 53, the leading edge of the paper P stopped against the cursor 71 is forcibly pressed downward by the curl holding guide 721. Even if it is formed, this curl is corrected and becomes substantially flat, so that the alignment of the paper P can be performed more reliably than when the curl is not corrected.

  Further, since the rack member 725 is urged downward by the urging force of the coil spring 76, the rack member 725 is always urged downward by the urging force of the coil spring 76, and simply by its own weight. It is possible to descend more quickly than those that are lowered.

  Since the image forming apparatus 10 is equipped with the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70 configured as described above, the image forming apparatus 10 can enjoy the effects of the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and includes the following contents.

  (1) In the above-described embodiment, the curl presser guide 721 is formed of a hard synthetic resin so that the presser guide main body 722 functions as a rigid body. Alternatively, the curl presser guide 721 may be rotated until the presser guide main body 722 is inclined downward. By doing so, it becomes possible to press the curled portion of the paper P while the presser guide body 722 set to the paper pressing posture is bent, and the curling of the paper P can be more reliably corrected. .

  (2) In the above-described embodiment, the paper P is subjected to the staple processing by the stapler 45 as post-processing. However, as post-processing to which the present invention is applied, for example, sorting work is performed in addition to the stapling processing. Can be mentioned. In this sorting operation, prior to discharging the paper P to the outer tray 44, the paper P is moved in order in the front-rear direction by an appropriate number of sheets. By doing so, the stacking position in the front-rear direction differs for each appropriate number of sheets P discharged onto the out-body tray 44, and the subsequent sheet P can be easily sorted. Further, post-processing can include clipping a bundle of sheets P, attaching a tape, and further performing a punching operation.

  (3) In the above embodiment, the case where the image forming apparatus 10 is an electrophotographic copying machine has been described as an example. However, the present invention is limited to the image forming apparatus 10 being a copying machine. However, the present invention can also be applied to various printers, facsimile machines, and these multifunction devices.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70 is applied to the in-cylinder tray 53. However, the present invention is limited to the application of the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 70 to the in-cylinder tray 53. Instead, for example, the present invention may be applied to a tray at various places where the paper P is discharged, such as the out-body tray 44.

  (5) FIG. 14 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the conveyance direction alignment mechanism 90. (A) is a state in which the paper pressing member 91 is set at the presser release position, and (B) is the paper. A state in which the presser member 91 is approaching the paper presser position, and (C) show a state in which the paper presser member 91 is set to the paper presser position. The conveyance direction alignment mechanism (paper alignment device) 90 of this embodiment replaces the paper pressing mechanism 72 provided with the pinion 724 and the rack body 726 in the above-described embodiment, and is a paper pressing that exhibits an inverted L shape in a side view. A member 91 is employed. The sheet pressing member 91 includes a vertical plate 92 that can be moved up and down along the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71, and a horizontal plate 93 that extends from the upper edge of the vertical plate 92 toward the left. It is made up of.

  Further, in this embodiment, the cam 95 provided on the second belt 746 has the same shape as the cam 77 of the above embodiment, but the left and right sides of the cam 77 are attached to the second belt 746 in reverse. This is different from the above embodiment. The cam 95 has a cam body 951 corresponding to the cam body 771 and a projecting end 955 corresponding to the projecting end 775. The cam main body 951 is provided with an arcuate peak portion 952 and a left inclined surface 953.

  According to the transport direction alignment mechanism 90 configured in this way, first, in the state where the paper pressing member 91 is initially positioned in accordance with the size of the paper P, as shown in FIG. 91 vertical plates 92 are placed on the arcuate apex portion 952 of the cam 95 so that the horizontal plate 93 is positioned at the upper position.

  In this state, when the paper P is supplied to the in-body tray 53, even if a so-called curl in which the leading edge is bent upward is formed on the paper P, this curled portion is placed upright on the cursor 71. Since it is received by the vertical plate 92 and the horizontal plate 93 that extend further upward from the upper end portion of the plate 712, it is possible to reliably prevent the inconvenience that the leading edge of the paper P passes over to the right of the cursor 71. .

  When it is detected that the leading edge of the paper P has reached the position of the standing plate 712, the cursor 71 is driven by the first drive motor 731 based on the control signal from the control device via the first belt 736. As a result, the sheet pressing member 91 rubs down the right inclined surface 773 of the cam main body 951 as shown in FIG. Is pressed by the horizontal plate 93.

  When the paper pressing member 91 reaches the protruding end 955 of the cam body 951, the horizontal plate 93 is in contact with the top of the standing plate 712 of the cursor 71 as shown in FIG. Thus, the curled portion of the paper P is pressed by the horizontal plate 93, so that the curl of the paper P is corrected.

1 is a front view illustrating an overview of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of the appearance of the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. It is explanatory drawing of the front view which shows one Embodiment of a paper feeding / conveying unit, and has shown the state in which a paper is supplied to the alignment unit. It is explanatory drawing of the front view which shows one Embodiment of a paper feeding / conveying unit, and has shown the state by which a paper sheet is discharged to an outer tray. It is a top view which shows typically one Embodiment of a matching unit. It is sectional drawing of the side view which shows one Embodiment of a width adjustment member. It is a top view for demonstrating the 1st width adjustment member drive mechanism which drives the 1st width adjustment member. It is a top view for demonstrating the 2nd width adjustment member drive mechanism which drives the 2nd width adjustment member. It is a perspective view which shows one Embodiment of a conveyance direction alignment mechanism, and has shown the state seen from diagonally left. It is a perspective view which shows one Embodiment of a conveyance direction alignment mechanism, and has shown the state seen from diagonally right side. It is the schematic plan view which showed the conveyance direction alignment mechanism typically. It is the schematic front view which showed the conveyance direction alignment mechanism typically. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the attitude | position change effect | action of a curl presser guide, (A) is the state in which the presser guide main body is set to the presser release posture, and (B) is the presser guide main body facing the paper presser posture. The crawling state (c) shows a state where the presser guide main body is set to the paper presser posture. FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of a conveyance direction alignment mechanism, where (A) is a state in which the paper pressing member is set at a presser release position, and (B) is a state where the paper pressing member is moving toward the paper pressing position. A state (C) shows a state in which the paper pressing member is set at the paper pressing position. It is a top view which shows the conventional paper aligning apparatus. FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a curled portion of a sheet exceeds an upper end portion of an upright wall of a front member in a conventional sheet aligning device. It is explanatory drawing which shows the standing wall of the improved front member in the conventional paper aligning apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus 11 Apparatus main body 12 Lower housing 13 Connection housing 14 Upper housing 15 Paper feed part 16 Image forming part 17 Fixing part 18 Paper discharge part 20 Post-processing part 21 Image reading part 30 Primary charger 31 Exposure device 32 Developer 33 Transfer charger 34 Cleaner 35 Heater 36 Fixing roller 37 Pressure roller 38 Flapper 40 Paper discharge roller 41 Paper discharge plate 42 Feeding and conveying unit 43 Alignment unit 44 Out-of-body tray 45 Stapler 50 First width adjusting member driving mechanism 51 Paper stopper 52 Carrying roller 53 In-body tray (output tray)
531 Long guide opening 532 Guide concave groove 55 First width adjusting member 56 Second width adjusting member 60 Document table 61 Document pressing plate 62 Scan unit 63, 64, 65 Mirror 66 Lens unit 67 CCD
70 Transport direction alignment mechanism (paper alignment device)
71 Cursor 711 Cam body 712 Standing plate 713 Cutting groove 714 Bracket 715 Horizontal shaft 72 Paper pressing mechanism 721 Curl pressing guide (paper pressing guide)
722 Presser guide body 723 Supported shaft cylinder 724 Pinion 725 Rack member (rack)
726 Rack body 727 Sliding base 728 Stopper 73 Cursor drive mechanism 731 First drive motor 732 Drive shaft 733 Drive pulley 734 Driven pulley 735 Driven shaft 735 First belt 737 Connecting member 74 Positioning mechanism 741 Second drive motor 742 Drive shaft 743 Drive Pulley 744 Driven pulley 745 Driven shaft 746 Second belt 75 Rack holding member 76 Coils spring 761 Locking pin 762 Lower locking pin 77 Cam 771 Cam body 772 Arc top 773 Right inclined surface 774 Vertical surface 775 Projection end 90 Transport Direction alignment mechanism (paper alignment device)
91 Paper pressing member 92 Vertical plate 93 Horizontal plate 95 Cam 951 Cam body 952 Arc top 953 Left inclined surface 955 Projecting end P Paper

Claims (6)

A paper discharge tray the paper is discharged,
A movable in the sheet discharge direction of the paper, and a cursor for aligning the sheet discharged onto the sheet discharge tray,
And a sheet pressing member which operates in conjunction with the matching operation of the cursor is performed,
The cursor has an upright plate that is set up perpendicular to the paper discharge direction and stops the leading edge of the paper, and has a predetermined first position and a direction opposite to the paper discharge direction from the first position. It is possible to move between the second position moved by a predetermined distance to
The paper holding member is
When the cursor is in the first position, a receiving posture is provided to extend the paper contact surface by the standing plate substantially upward,
The sheet aligning apparatus , wherein when the cursor is at the second position, a pressing posture is adopted to press the leading edge of the sheet toward the stacking direction of the discharge tray . The paper pressing member is pivotally supported so as to be rotatable about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the paper discharge direction provided in the cursor,
In conjunction with the movement of the cursor, when the paper pressing member takes the receiving posture, it stands up so as to extend further upward from the upper end of the standing plate, and when it takes the pressing posture, the upright state The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising interlocking means for rotating the sheet to a substantially horizontal state . The cursor is attached to a first belt stretched in a reciprocating manner along the paper discharge tray, and a second belt is stretched in a reciprocating manner in parallel with the first belt. A rack provided on the cursor so as to be movable up and down, a pinion provided on the paper pressing guide to be engaged with the rack, and a cam provided on the second belt for raising and lowering the rack by interference with the rack The sheet aligning device according to claim 2 , wherein the sheet aligning device is provided. 4. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the rack is urged downward by an urging force of an urging means. The paper pressing member includes a vertical plate that can be moved up and down along the standing plate, and a horizontal plate that extends from the upper edge of the vertical plate in the direction opposite to the paper discharge direction,
In conjunction with the movement of the cursor, when the paper pressing member takes the receiving posture, when the vertical plate is raised so as to extend further upward from the upper end of the standing plate, and when the pressing posture is taken, 2. The paper aligning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising interlocking means for lowering the vertical plate so that the horizontal plate can press the leading edge of the paper. An image forming apparatus, to which the sheet aligning device according to claim 1 is applied.

Images